It seems like every time I turn around, someone is claiming the beginning of a new year. Western Christians start anew at advent. Theophany and Pascha have also been markers of new beginnings historically. Our culture celebrates the new year in the middle of winter on January 1.

It is a rainy day. The sky has been gray for three days straight and the air feels cool, despite being July in the south. I welcome it gladly, as a reminder that autumn is approaching. Autumn whispers and beings to gently rouse me from my slow and lazy summer days. And the church does too.

Cakes are no ordinary dessert. They do not sit in the same category as everyday common sweets, like cookies or brownies. Even in this modern era when so many people can access anything they wish at any time, cakes are often still reserved to commemorate special occasions in a person’s life, such as birthdays, baptisms, graduations, weddings— heck even funerals! For every sacramental occasion in your life, there will be priests and there will be cake.

In Orthodoxy, there a yearly, weekly, and daily cycles. These cycles provide us a way to mystically participate in the life of Christ, bring remembrance to what not ought be forgotten, bring sacramental life into the ordinary, and bring meaning and purpose into our time here.

If you are Orthodox, it is very likely you have heard of the Georgian dinner party tradition called supra. If you aren’t familiar, it is night of feasting, toasting, connecting, reflecting and savoring. There is usually one toastmaster that guides the entire evening’s conversation through a series of toasts.